Quote & Unquote: Avoiding Plagiarism in a Digital Age UCI Libraries Workshop Stephanie Davis-Kahl & Jennifer Jacobs

What is Plagiarism? “Plagiarism is intellectual theft. It means use of the intellectual creations of another without proper attribution. Plagiarism may take two main forms, which are clearly related: 1. To steal or pass off as one's own the ideas or words, images, or other creative works of another. 2. To use a creative production without crediting the source, even if only minimal information is available to identify it for citation. Credit must be given for every direct quotation, for paraphrasing or summarizing a work (in whole, or in part, in one's own words), and for information which is not common knowledge.” (

Why Cite? Essential to establishing the validity of your argument(s); Demonstrates your knowledge of a topic/subject; Adding your words, interpretation, ideas to the existing body of knowledge about a topic; Informs and educates your readers on your research process.

Citing Defined The formal acknowledgement of your source. Must be done when either quoting or paraphrasing an author. Possible styles to follow: footnote, endnote, APA, MLA, Chicago Manual of Style More Information online at –

Quotations When using the same language the source used. Must be a faithful transcription, using brackets and ellipses if necessary. Must be cited, whether within the text or in a note.

Paraphrasing Summarizing the ideas from the source, but using your own words and sentence structure. Must be cited, whether within the text or in a note. –One exception: common knowledge.

Common citation confusions Do I have to cite an anonymous author? Government publications are in the public domain. Can’t I use them freely? I got all my information off the Web--I don’t have to worry about citation. How do I cite Scholar 2’s analysis of Scholar 1’s work?

Citing Websites Format of citation depends on style (MLA, APA, Chicago) Usually includes URL of website, date accessed, publisher/creator of website Formats change often - check style guides Does not include journals from full-text article databases

Citing Full-Text Articles from Online Databases Similar intention to citing articles from print journals Extra step of identifying the online source of the article Including full URL of specific article usually not required, in fact sometimes difficult. Refer to style guides for exact format. APA: Levenstein, Harvey. (1980) The New England Kitchen and the Origins of Modern American Eating Habits. American Quarterly 32(4). Retrieved April 14, 2003, from MLA: Levenstein, Harvey. “The New England Kitchen and the Origins of Modern American Eating Habits.” American Quarterly : JSTOR. UCI Libraries, Irvine, CA. April 14, 2003.

Citing Scholar 2 who is citing Scholar 1 Some considerations: –Is Scholar 1 in a different academic discipline? –Do you know enough about Scholar 1? –Is Scholar 2 saying something original about Scholar 1? –Are both scholars a part of the research trail that you need to document? To find out more about Scholar 1, do an author search in ANTPAC or an article database to find out what Scholar 1 wrote, or who else has cited Scholar 1 in their work.

Preventing Plagiarism during the Research Process Document your research –Record your search strategies and list the databases you used in your research –Print out or citations so you can verify sources –Note publication information so citations are correct Use EndNote software to record research and help you cite correctly according to style (APA, MLA, etc)

Preventing Plagiarism during the Writing Process Make an outline that shows your arguments and the quotes/paraphrases you plan to use to support your points Use quotes/paraphrases as supporting evidence to your own ideas; analysis over reporting. Ask your professor, instructor or TA for advice if you are unsure about the use of other’s work in your paper.

Help on the Web Writing 39C Resources site: The Paraphrasing Quiz: TurnItIn.com Research Resources for Students Other Sources This site is especially helpful with information on what academic writing aims to achieve, examples of plagiarism, and excellent chart on preventing plagiarism in your work: –

Style Guides in the Libraries Writing 39C Texts –Writing from A to Z (Gateway Study Center Reserves, PE1408.W ) –Student Guide to Writing at UCI (Main and Science Library, PE1408.H ) American Psychological Association (APA) –Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th edition, 2001, UCI Main Library Reference Desk, BF76.7 P –The World’s Easiest Guide to Using the APA, 3rd edition, 2001, UCI Main Library Reference, BF76.7 P Suppl. Modern Language Association (MLA) –MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing, 2nd edition, 1998, UCI Main Library Reference Desk, PN147.G

Style Guides, Continued Council of Biology Editors (CBE) –Scientific Style and Format: the CBE Manual for Authors, Editors and Publishers, 6th edition, (Science Library Reference, WZ345.S ) Chicago –Chicago Manual of Style, 2nd edition, UCI Main Library Reference, Science Library Reference, Z253.U69) Government & Legal –See Introduction to Legal Citation by Peter M. Martin (Cornell Law School), at UCI Libraries Style Manuals and Writing Guides site –

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